The invention relates to a device for picking up and carrying away stacks of blanks arranged one above the other, especially for the fabrication of hinge-lid packets for cigarettes, a plurality of stacks of blanks being positioned in rows beside one another on a base and preferably layers formed of a plurality of rows being arranged one above the other, preferably on a pallet, and in addition, for picking up preferably individual stacks of blanks, a pick-up head disposed on a swivelling arm gripping the stack of blanks and depositing it on a conveyor.
The cigarette industry with its efficient packaging machines is dependent on reliable and likewise efficient devices and units for handling the packaging material. The widely used hinge-lid packets are manufactured from blanks which are produced elsewhere and which are delivered as stacks of blanks, mostly on pallets. The invention relates to emptying the pallets, i.e. to picking up the stacks of blanks from the pallet and passing them on to the packaging machine or to a store or conveyor for the stacks of blanks.
The purpose underlying the invention is to propose a handling device for stacks of blanks which with great efficiency takes the stacks of blanks from the pallet or a base, lifts them up and deposits them in a suitable place.
In fulfilment of this purpose, the device according to the invention is characterised in that the pick-up head of the handling device has two holding jaws which come into contact with free, adjoining side surfaces of the stack of blanks and grip and hold the latter solely by suction.
Whereas, on previous devices for handling stacks of blanks, a tongue-like, thin-walled holding or gripping member is always driven underneath the stack of blanks, the mode of operation of the pick-up head according to the invention rests on the fact that the (individual) stack of blanks is solely gripped and held on upright side surfaces, and this by suction air, i.e. vacuum.
To this end, the pick-up head is equipped with two upright holding jaws arranged at a right angle to one another and which, when the pick-up head is in a receiving position, are driven by a corresponding movement, preferably individually and in succession, against associated upright side surfaces of the stack of blanks. When these holding jaws rest against the stack of blanks, vacuum is created via suction holes in the region of the bearing surfaces of the holding jaws. In this way, the stack of blanks which is formed of blanks stacked very closely together is fixed on the two holding jaws. The pick-up head can now be lifted up with the stack of blanks and driven to deposit same.
Additional features of the invention relate to the design of the pick-up head, especially of the holding jaws, as well as to members for controlling the necessary movements of the pick-up head. An embodiment, given by way of example, of the device according to the invention is described in greater detail below with the aid of the drawings. These show :